Field of the Invention
The invention generally relates to methods and apparatuses to produce graphene and nanoparticle catalysts supported on graphene without the use of reducing agents. In particular, the invention provides methods and apparatuses which use ultraviolet (UV), visible (VIS) and/or infrared (IR) light to reduce (deoxygenate) graphite oxide (GO) to graphene, or to reduce a mixture of GO plus one or more metals ions to produce nanoparticle catalysts supported on graphene. The invention further provides methods and systems to generate and utilize heat that is produced by irradiating GO, graphene and their metal and semiconductor nanocomposites with UV, VIS, and/or IR radiation, e.g. using sunlight, lasers, etc.
Background of the Invention
The recent extensive interest in graphene associated with its unique hexagonal atomic layer structure and unusual properties, including the highest intrinsic carrier mobility at room temperature of all known materials, is motivated by the development of new composite materials for nanoelectronics, supercapacitors, batteries, photovoltaics, light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and related devices. Other properties of graphene such as the high thermal, chemical, and mechanical stability as well as high surface area also represent desirable characteristics as a 2-D catalyst support for metallic and bimetallic nanoparticles for a variety of applications in heterogeneous catalysis, sensors, hydrogen storage, and energy conversion.
Recent advances in the production of graphene sheets through the reduction of exfoliated graphite oxide (GO) have provided efficient approaches for the large scale production of chemically converted graphene (CCG) sheets. However, chemical reduction methods suffer from the difficulty of controlling the reduction process and residual contamination by the chemical reducing agents. This can cause detrimental effects, particularly for electronic applications of graphene. Therefore, there is a need for developing deoxygenation/reduction methods that do not rely on the use of chemicals or high temperatures. Recently, a flash reduction process was reported for the deoxygenation of GO films by photothermal heating of camera flash lights.1,2 However, the method does not provide a solution process for the synthesis of individual graphene sheets because it was only applied to thin dry films of GO. Similarly, femtosecond laser pulses have been used for imprinting and patterning of 55 nm thick GO films, which resulted in partial reduction of the GO multilayer film with reduced depth of 35-25 nm, but the laser reduction process of individual GO sheets dispersed in water was not demonstrated.3 